Cracked Diamond
by Twilight Joltik
Summary: After being visited in a dream by the Legendary Pokemon Cresselia, Dawn finds herself back at the very start of her Pokemon journey in a world a bit different from her own. With the help of friends, familiar and new, she must find out what she is there to stop and how to save this strange new world.
1. Prologue

_**Note- I do not own Pokemon or anything in this but my own ideas. Thanks and enjoy. -Twilight Joltik**_

* * *

Cracked Diamond- Prologue

Dawn Echona was absolutely exhausted. She had spent nearly the entire day trying to teach her Mamoswine Rock Slide without making much headway, and had barely eaten since that morning. To make matters worse, there was a contest in Celadon City in only a week's time. She knew she did not have any time to spare, but also that she would not be any use to her Pokémon if she was dead on her feet. Though it was only now a hazy twilight was settling over the Kanto region, she pulled out her sleeping bag so she could sleep. Her Mamoswine looked at her quizzically and grunted in confusion. "But is is still early! We can't rest yet!", he seemed to say.

"Sorry Mamoswine," she sighed. "I'm really tired. We can train more in the morning, first thing."

He nodded and Dawn recalled the massive beast to his Poké Ball. She beckoned her Piplup over to return to his Poké Ball for the night as well. Noticing her, he waddled across the ground holding a bunch of berries. He held them out to Dawn all the while, as if imploring her to at least eat something before sleeping. Dawn smiled at her partner Pokémon's kind gesture. It was nice, even when she was traveling alone through the Kanto Region to know she had friends who cared about her. She choked down the berries so Piplup would stop worrying. They were very bitter, but still made her feel a bit less fatigued. However, they did not help enough to keep her from falling asleep the moment she got into her sleeping bag.

As she slept, she had an odd dream. It started out much like many of her dreams. She was in the appeal round of a contest, using her Mamoswine. Together, they put on a rather beautiful lights display using Rock Slide and Hidden Power. The crowd was awed, and she instantly found herself in the battle round, this time using her Togekiss. They were facing off against a Cresselia for some reason. Togekiss was gracefully firing Air Slashes at the Lunar Pokémon, but not one was connecting. The attacks simply passed through the Legendary Pokémon. Dawn was frustrated by the Pokémon, but as she looked away, she found the Contest Hall and her Togekiss had vanished.

She and Cresselia were floating in a blue, starry void. "W-where am I?", asked Dawn.

"Nowhere," declared a voice. Dawn deducted it must have been the Cresselia communicating telepathically.

"Nowhere?", Dawn repeated. "What do you mean?"

"This place is a void lying in between dimensions," Cresselia clarified. "Therefore, it is located nowhere."

Dawn nodded, though she did not quite understand. "But why am I here? This is a dream, right?"

"Of sorts. And you are here because I require your assistance."

"What do you need my help with?", Dawn questioned. "Why me? What is going on? Wha–?"

She was cut off. "I am afraid that is all I may tell you, but know this, young one. You must be very brave. Use all you have learned, all you have been taught. Best of luck, Dawn Echona."

Dawn started to voice the endless questions buzzing in her head, but before she could, the mysterious landscape began to slip out of focus and blackness overtook her. Dawn knew she was falling, but she did not know where she was falling to.

* * *

Dawn jolted awake suddenly. Eyes lazily drifting open, her odd dream floated away from her. However, as she awoke, she began to take note of her surroundings. While she could have sworn she had slept in her sleeping bag in the middle of a field, she soon noted that she was, in fact, in a bed inside a building. That did not make any sense to her; had she forgotten going to a Pokémon Center? Maybe her Pokémon thought she could use a nice rest and had somehow brought her there? No, that wasn't possible; she would have woken up, and her Pokémon weren't likely to do such a thing. But how was she there?

As she willed herself to open her eyes fully, she noticed that she wasn't in any old room– she was in a pink-walled room with a window to her right flooding the room with the morning sun. She jolted up so she could look around more. She noted a lime green carpet on the hardwood floors and a table beside her bed with a Starly alarm clock and red flowering plant perched on it. There was no way around it; this was her own room. At her house. In the Sinnoh Region.

Jumping out of bed, as she prepared to bolt down the stairs and ask her mother what was going on, she noted what she was wearing. The pink nightgown she was wearing was one she had grown out of years ago, but it fit her perfectly. She stopped in her tracks to try to make sense of it all when a calm voice resonated in her head. "Dawn, do you have any clue what has occurred?", it asked.

Dawn remembered that voice from the dream she had nearly forgotten. "Cresselia!", Dawn exclaimed. "What's going on? Why am I at my house? How does this still fit me?", she questioned.

"You are in a world unknown to anyone of your own, young one," stated Cresselia. "It is not unlike the one you have left behind, but you will certainly find differences."

"What do you mean?"

The voice let out a nearly inaudible chuckle. "This is a world parallel to your own. You have been placed here to guide its progress a bit more quickly. You see, this day is the one you are to start your Pokémon journey."

Dawn stared straight in front of her. A parallel world? Time travel? This was impossible, it had to be! But, the more she thought about it, the more it became the only logical option. Besides, the Reverse World was parallel world, and she had time travelled to save Arceus, so how was this any less plausible?

"Okay, I've got it," Dawn stated quietly. Just two questions- why am I here, and how does this nightgown still fit me?"

"I told you, this world is in danger and it needs someone with experience in similar events to guide its progress a bit more swiftly. You were the best candidate, we decided. And as for your nightgown, well, let's just say that you are taking the place of this dimension's 'Dawn'."

"So where is she?"

"She is unharmed and will be returned to her proper self with no memory of the event when this is all over," evasively answered the Legendary Pokemon.

"I said," Dawn reiterated forcefully. "Where is she?"

"In your place. Do not worry, you will not lose anything, as once this anomaly is undone, you all will return to exactly where this all started, what you did hopefully erased. There is something horribly wrong with this world, Dawn, and it is up to you all to fix it. I will speak to you when it is needed."

Cresselia's voice fell silent, leaving Dawn with only empty questions.

_Current Party-_

_Dawn- N/A_

* * *

_**AN- I sincerely hope you all liked this. I know this is a bit timey-wimey, but it was either this or a vanilla rewrite.**_

_**Also, I need Pokemon to populate the parties of the main characters! The current ones who need Pokemon are Dawn, Ash, Paul, Zoey, Barry, and Kenny. Other characters will appear, but these are the characters I need Pokemon for the most right now. Also, most importantly, please tell me whether you would rather Ash have a Kricketot, Shinx, Nidoran Male/Female or Bidoof and whether you would rather Dawn catch a Ralts, Cubone, Abra, or Zubat. Note they don't necessarily only have to catch just one, but I would like to know what you all are most interested in.**_

_**Thank you for reading!- Twilight Joltik**_


	2. The Uncanny Valley

Cracked Diamond Chapter One

_The Uncanny Valley_

Soon after pulling on her usual attire, Dawn went downstairs and saw 'her' mother making breakfast. "Morning, mom!", Dawn forced out cheerily.

Her mother smiled. "Good morning, dear. Are you ready?"

Dawn nodded. "You bet!", she choked out perkily. "I've even got my Pokémon picked out and everything!"

'Dawn's' mother looked at her oddly. "Oh? Last night, you told me you had no clue," she stated. "Make sure you pick wisely; this Pokémon will be your partner for the rest of your journey."

Suppressing a chuckled, Dawn nodded. "Yeah, but I was thinking about it, and I think I found the best option. Chimchar is too battle-oriented, and while Turtwig is cute, I don't think it's move set is really suited to Contests. So, I think I'll go with Piplup. Its Water-type attacks will be great for contests!"

'Her' mother smiled at her proudly. "That is a very mature decision. I'm very proud of you. I remember your father- he couldn't make up his mind for so long that even though he was the first there, he couldn't decide until there was only one left!" Dawn blinked in surprise; her mother never mentioned her father. However, she needed to remember that this wasn't her mother, or at least not as she knew her. "You better hurry, though, so none of the other trainers get it before you," she added.

"O-other trainers?", Dawn stuttered in surprise. She bit her cheek. Cresselia had warned her some things would be different. And even in her world, it wasn't like she was the only one to get a Pokémon from the Professor. "Right. Forgot about them. Oops!"

'Her' mother laughed lightly. "It's fine. You just need to hurry and eat," she said while getting toast out of the toaster. "You're all packed, right?"

Dawn suddenly remembered what she had initially wanted to bring on that day. "Um, I might have overpacked the tiniest bit," she admitted sheepishly.

"Don't worry about that," 'her' mother stated. "I figured that would happen, so I packed for you." She placed a familiar yellow backpack on the counter.

"Thanks," Dawn breathed.

'Her' mother smiled as she placed Dawn's breakfast in front of her. "Eat up so you can set out," she said.

Dawn ate her toast at breakneck speed and rushed out the door as she grabbed her backpack. "Thank you! I'll call you soon!", she started off. She was a little sad to find she had no bike in this world, but on the bright side, at least there would be nothing for Pikachu to deep-fry.

'Her' mother smiled as she waved Dawn off. "Goodbye, dear! Have fun!"

Dawn sped off, trying desperately to remember the location of the lab. Quickly reaching Sandgem Town, she nearly ran into a sign. "Welcome to Sandgem Town," it read. "The town of Sand and Sea! Professor's Lab- Go straight, then take the second left and then a right."

Reading it, Dawn face-palmed. Had this sign always been there? Could her entire initial struggle have been simplified just like that? Or was it unique to this world? Not knowing the answer, Dawn followed its instructions and found herself at the lab. However, also there she found someone she had not expected.

"K-Kenny?", Dawn stuttered out.

The boy rolled his eyes. "Well, no duh! Dawn, you've known for months we'd be starting the same day!", he exclaimed. Dawn noted that she was called Dawn, not Dee-Dee. She was certainly glad that incident had not followed her to this world.

"R-right. Just forgot for a second," she lied. While it made sense they would start the same day, she also recalled he had chosen Piplup as well. She did not want to lose one of her best friends to him. "So, last one in the lab's a rotten Exeggcute!", she exclaimed.

She rushed to the lab door, but it was locked. "We have to wait for Barry," Kenny reminded her irritably. "You haven't forgotten him as well, have you?"

Dawn gulped. If Barry was the third trainer, that even further lowered the chance of her getting Piplup. She just had to hope that if the Pokémon escaped here as well, that she would be the first to find Piplup and save him from the Ariados.

Barry soon arrived in a quick rush. "S-sorry," he panted. "Didn't mean to be late."

"It's fine. You aren't late," Dawn reassured.

Lunging forwards, Barry cried "I'm fining both of you for getting here before me!" Dawn smiled. He was just the same as ever, even here.

Professor Rowan passed by the window, glancing out of it. Seeing all there present, he unlocked the door. "Hello, welcome to my lab. Please, make your decisions quickly, I am very busy," he groaned.

"Someone's in a bad mood," Kenny hissed under his breath.

The trio filed in as Professor Rowan slammed the door shut. Much to Dawn's surprise, she found all three Starter Pokemon perched on the table, not squabbling or escaped.

"Dawn," Barry called, interrupting her train of thought. "You should pick first. I mean, ladies first, right?"

Dawn blinked in astonished confusion. That was… strangely polite for him. She heard Kenny complaining "Aw, come on!", but soon after came a muttered "Fine…"

She smiled and picked up the Poke Ball in front of Piplup. "Piplup!", he chirped. Dawn smiled. Even in this world, she would have her partner Pokemon to stand with her.

Kenny stepped up beside her. "I'll choose Turtwig, then," he stated. The Turtwig blankly grinned up at him, but he remained oddly stony-faced. Dawn never knew the Kenny in her world to be quite this bad tempered. But, she supposed, she barely knew this Kenny at all.

Barry took the Chimchar's Poke Ball, smiling. "This is the one I wanted anyways," he commented.

"Good," stated Professor Rowan. "No one tried to bite anyone's head off. That's always a plus. Now," he handed them each a Pokedex. Dawn received a pink one, Kenny's was blue, and Barry's orange. "Now, please leave. I am very busy, and I do not have any time for this."

The three recalled their new Pokemon and left quickly. Once they were outside, Dawn stated"Gosh, why would he give Pokemon to children if he doesn't want anyone near him?" offhandedly.

Kenny shrugged. "Dunno. I guess he's still researching the Legendary Pokemon in Lake Verity."

Dawn's eyes widened. Professor Rowan was researching Mesprit? He had mentioned it to her in passing once, but the one she knew never seemed to take much interest in it. This world had differences from her own everywhere she looked, she reminded herself. If she got caught up in them, she wouldn't ever get… whatever it was Cresselia sent her here to do done.

"Hey, Kenny, let's have a battle!", Barry exclaimed.

Kenny shook his head. "No thanks, I'm not really big on…"

"Come on! If you don't, I'm fining you big time!"

Dawn found this time a good opportunity to take her leave. She did not know if she was going to have to save Pikachu from Team Rocket this time, but something, probably Cresselia, was pulling her towards Lake Verity. Perhaps because a Legendary Pokemon lived there, she would find a clue as to what it was she needed to do.

"Come on, Piplup!", she stated to the closed Poke Ball. "Let's find out what this is all about."

Dawn dashed towards the lake with relatively little trouble and, thankfully, no Ariados swarms. Upon her arrival, she found the lake relatively undisturbed, save for a Surskit riding across it. Dawn called her Piplup out and stared across the water, awaiting Mesprit.

"You will not find her here," Cresselia's voice cried out. "That is part of the disturbance you must fix."

"What do you mean?"

"There was an attack to us- six Legendary Pokemon of the Sinnoh Region. Mesprit, Uxie, Azelf, Heatran, Shaymin, and myself. We can no longer take physical form here, but that does not mean we have no power," the Lunar Pokemon stated.

"What can I do?", Dawn asked. "How did this happen?"

"We… are not sure yet," Cresselia admitted. "But I believe you can find answers in Eterna City. Godspeed, Dawn Echona."

Cresselia's voice left her head, but Dawn heard a loud cry. She turned around to see a familiar trainer battling the Surskit she had spotted earlier with a Starly. "Aerial Ace," commanded Paul. His Starly struck the Surskit easily, and it let out another cry. Paul then threw a Poke Ball at it, encasing it effortlessly. It shook three times before clicking, signaling the boy to pick up the Poke Ball. Dawn cringed, knowing the dejection the Surskit was about to experience.

Paul scanned the Surskit's Poke Ball with his Pokedex, frowning. "Aqua Jet," he muttered. "Well, I suppose it might come in handy." He then placed it in his bag and Dawn let out a slight sigh of relief.

Suddenly, Paul turned to Dawn. "Why are you staring at me?", he questioned harshly.

She blushed in embarrassment. "Paul, I-"

"Wait," he interrupted. "How do you know my name?"

"I-it was on your Pokedex's screen!", she lied.

He knew as well as she did that it was unlikely she could have spotted it at that distance or that angle, but he seemed to accept it. "Alright. I suppose I'll see you around," he huffed as he walked away. Dawn sighed, and returned Piplup to its Poke Ball. She had not expected to run into him, but it raised Dawn's hopes that she might find Ash as well.

Starting back towards Route 202, she heard yet another familiar voice exclaim "Darn it, we were so close!". Dawn smiled and ran towards the source of the noise, finding Ash looking around dejectedly, Pikachu by his side. "Great!", she thought. "Now I just need to find Brock and everything will be just like it was."

"Um, what were you yelling about?", Dawn casually asked her old friend.

"I was trying to catch a Nidoran and it got away," Ash complained. "Y'see, I wanted to challenge this trainer to a battle, but he told me he wouldn't battle me unless I had three Pokemon, but I only have Pikachu and Starly."

Dawn noted that he did not have Aipom. She felt sad that she wouldn't be able to see her old partner here, but reminded herself that she wasn't here for fun or nostalgia. "Oh," Ash remembered. "I'm Ash Ketchum by the way. I'm from Pallet Town in Kanto. And this is my partner Pikachu!"

Pikachu reclaimed its usual perch on Ash's shoulder and chirped "Pika Pikachu!".

"Nice to meet you," Dawn smiled, trying not to giggle from the absurdity of the reintroduction. "I'm Dawn from Twinleaf Town. If you need three Pokemon, you can borrow my Piplup."

"Really? Thanks!", Ash exclaimed. "Hear that, Pikachu? We can battle Paul now!", he told his Pokemon. Pikachu cried out in excitement as the two dashed back towards Verity Lakefront. Dawn followed them, struggling to keep up. They soon came across Paul, who was battling a wild Bidoof with his Surskit. It easily defeated the Bidoof with an Aqua Jet. As it did so, Dawn noticed something glint around its yellow antenne. The Bidoof ran off and Paul recalled his Surskit while looking over at Ash and Dawn. "Oh," he deadpanned. "It's you again. Do you have three Pokemon this time?"

"Yeah!", Ash exclaimed. "Now, let's battle!"

Dawn handed him Piplup's Poke Ball. "Good luck!", she cried.

Paul grunted and sent out a Sneasel as Ash sent out his Starly. It easily bested Starly with an Icy Wind. They both recalled their Pokemon and sent out their next. Ash sent out Piplup, and Paul chose the Surskit he had caught earlier. "Hey Dawn!", Ash called. "What moves does your Piplup know again?"

"Peck, BubbleBeam, and Bide, I think," she replied.

"Wait," Paul exclaimed. "That isn't your Piplup?"

"No, I borrowed it from Dawn," Ash replied. Paul simply withdrew his Surskit and started to walk away. "Wait!", Ash called to him. "Where are you going?"

"To find a battle with a Trainer who takes his craft seriously," Paul replied. "Which you, clearly, do not," he added.

Ash stood there for a moment, staring at the rapidly departing trainer and making several failed attempts to sputter something out. Finally, he turned to me and shook his head. "What just happened?", he asked. "I mean, how do I not take Pokemon Training seriously? I've beaten the Battle Frontier!", he practically yelled. In the distance, Paul turned around.

"What?", he exclaimed. "T-that's not possible! You don't have anything but a Pikachu and a Starly!"

Ash shook his head. "No, actually I have lots of Pokemon. I just wanted to only take Pikachu when I went to Sinnoh so I could train more Pokemon instead of just my old ones."

Paul nodded. "I understand that. You want to have a wider range of options when it really matters, so you don't always have your best ones with you. I still don't want to battle you now, but whenever you have your good ones on you, I would be glad to." He walked away, leaving Ash pleased and Dawn astonished. It had taken Paul ages to respect Ash before, but now he respected him right off the bat. But, then again, considering Reggie had been unable to beat the Battle Frontier, knowing that about Ash was bound to impress him.

Ash recalled Piplup and handed its Poke Ball back to Dawn. "Thanks for letting me borrow your Pokemon," he said.

"No problem!", replied Dawn. "Where are you headed, I mean, now that you're in Sinnoh and all."

"The Nurse Joy at the Sandgem Pokemon Center said Oreburgh City was the first one trainers here usually challenge, but that Canalave City was just as close. What do you think?"

"Oreburgh, definately," Dawn suggested. After a moment's thought she decided the best way to help Cresselia and get to Eterna was to accompany Ash. Besides, if she was supposed to streamline process a bit, that likely meant Ash was to be involved in the solution regardless. And, I'm going to Jubilife City to compete in a Pokemon Contest! So, since we're heading the same way, do you want to go together?"

Ash shrugged. "Normally I wouldn't have a problem with that, but we just met."

"Ash, I am going to sound really weird here but…" Dawn hesitated. Should she tell Ash the truth? What if he didn't believe her? Then he wouldn't travel with her for sure!

"But what?", Ash asked.

"I'm a friend of yours from another dimension. I was sent here by the Legendary Pokemon Cresselia to help you progress on your journey faster. I know it sounds crazy, but I can prove it. You woke up late on the first day of your Pokemon journey and got Pikachu because it was the only Pokemon left. It hated you until you saved it from a flock of Spearow and destroyed Misty's bike. After Pikachu defeated the Spearow, you saw a Ho-oh in the sky. Team Rocket has been following you since they discovered how strong your Pikachu is and have a talking Meowth. You travelled Hoenn with May and her younger brother Max. You have a Shiny Noctowl and thirty Tauros. The first Pokemon you ever caught was Caterpie. You learned that you had Aura pow..."

"Stop!", Ash cried. "Just… stop. I believe you. You can come with me. Just please, don't bring that up."

"Why not?", Dawn asked. "What's wrong with Aura powers?"

"I can't let anyone know about that, okay? I just can't. If you promise to never mention them again, you can come with me."

"Okay…", Dawn sighed.

As the two set off, Dawn asked Ash a few questions to get a feel for his life in this universe.

"So, do Team Rocket still follow you around here?"

"Not since Johto."

"Okay, do you still travel with Brock?"

"Also not since Johto."

Dawn felt disheartened. Did that mean Brock wouldn't be with them here? She was fine to be without Team Rocket, but she was sad her other closest traveling friend wouldn't be joining them, most likely. "B-but how do you cook and survive and stuff?"

"Had to learn how to do that stuff myself," Ash answered. After a moment, he added "I mean, May was hopeless at cooking and wouldn't let Max near fires if she didn't absolutely have to."

"Okay. Can we stop at the Pokemon Center for the night?"

"Dawn," Ash berated. "It's not even noon yet."

Dawn sighed. Something told her this was going to be a long day.

* * *

_Party-_

_Dawn- Piplup (male, Lv 5)_

_Ash- Pikachu (male, Lv ?)_

_Starly (male, Lv 4)_

_Other Trainers-_

_Paul- Turtwig (male, Lv 12)_

_Sneasel (male, Lv 13)_

_Elekid (female, Lv 12)_

_Surskit (female, Lv 7)_

_Kenny- Turtwig (female, Lv 6)_

_Barry- Chimchar (male, Lv 5)_

* * *

**_AN- I am having so much fun with this! It really is fun to twist characters in slightly different ways. You guys aren't too upset I'm leaving Brock and Team Rocket out of this, are you? All I'm doing is trying to cut down on filler. Also, I believe you have spoken. Dawn will be receiving a Ralts and a Cubone, and Ash a Shinx. However, his failed attempts to catch an unspecified Nidoran will be the closest he gets to a Nidoran, simply because the Nidoran requests were for the opposite gender. No concensus, sorry. _**

**_I still need requests for other Pokemon trainers can catch. Especially Barry and Zoey. So, today, choose between Budew, Starly, Shinx, or Psyduck for Barry, and suggest whatever Pokemon you want to see for Zoey. _**

**_Thanks for reading! -Twilight Joltik_**


	3. The Alternate Outcome

Cracked Diamond Chapter Two

_The Alternate Outcome_

Upon entering Route 202, a Buneary immediately crossed Dawn's path. Dawn sent out Piplup at once and commanded him to use Bubblebeam to assist in her capture. She was determined not to make the same mistakes she had made before catching it before. Buneary looked up after being hit and sprung towards Piplup using a… Pound attack? Dawn didn't remember Buneary ever knowing Pound. She told Piplup to hit it with one more BubbleBeam, nearly knocking it out.

"Now," Dawn cried. "Go, Poke Ball!" The device soared through the air, hitting Buneary and enveloping her. It shook three time before clicking. Dawn smiled and picked it up. "Alright, one partner down," she muttered.

"Partner?", Ash asked. "What do you mean?"

"I caught Buneary in my world too, but it took me longer and I only caught it right before entering Jubilife," Dawn explained.

"Dawn, I'm not even going to pretend to know how your whole time-travelling thing works," Ash said "but if you caught in a different place, are you sure it's the same Pokemon?"

Dawn felt as if she had been hit on the head with a Geodude. Ash was right. She pulled her Pokedex out and scanned Buneary's Poke Ball to check. The display stated it knew Pound, Frustration, Defence Curl, and Endure- none of which her Buneary had ever known, to her knowledge. It also stated this Buneary was male. Tears formed in her eyes. This was not her friend. As long as she was in this world, it was doubtful she would encounter her Buneary. She certainly did not have time to search the entire route, and even if by some celestial chance she did find her, she wouldn't remember her. Heck, even Piplup didn't remember Dawn. But come what may, Dawn had something to do, and if she had to save the world without her Pokemon, then that was just the way it had to be.

"Sorry, Dawn. I didn't mean to make you upset," Ash apologized.

"It's fine," Dawn sighed. "I should have thought of it earlier." She choked back tears, recalled Piplup to his Poke Ball, and started back on the road. She and Ash walked in silence for quite a while, until long after the sun set. Then, Dawn was stirred by the plucking of a harp.

She whirled around, attempting to find its origin. Dashing after it, she quickly found Nando playing for Forest Pokemon. Shinx, Kricketot, Bidoof, Starly, and many more were gathered before him, serenely listening to his song. Smiling, she reminded herself that not everything had to change in this world.

"What a lovely song," she remarked. Nando looked up in surprise. As she approached, the Pokemon started to scatter.

"Yes, the Pokemon seem to like it," he stated. "However, their song dwarfs my own easily."

Dawn remembered that night under the stars, her first as a Pokemon Trainer. "Yeah, I know. It really is something," she stated..

Nando smiled and nodded. "Not many hear their song. You must be quite attentive, young miss. Tell me, what is your name?"

"I'm Dawn. And you?"

"Nando. Tell me, Dawn, what is your path?"

Dawn remembered this part a bit. She remembered Nando struggling to choose between Contests and Gyms, and eventually choosing both. "Contests, but that doesn't matter. But you're having a bit of trouble choosing, right?", she asked.

He looked taken aback for a moment. "Why yes, yes it is. How did you know that?"

Dawn ignored that and choked out "Not important. But, you don't have to make a decision, you can do both."

"No, I do not wish to live in two worlds. I want to do what is best for my Pokemon."

Though the Nando in her world was fine with being both a Trainer and a Coordinator, this one did not appear to be. "Alright. Battle me, then. Maybe it'll help you make up your mind."

He nodded, and motioned her to follow him. He lead her to a clearing where no Pokemon were and stood on one side of it. Dawn stood on the other side, and grabbed Buneary's Poke Ball. Even if this Buneary was a different one, she could still make the most of it's new abilities. She called out her new Pokemon, and Nando placed his Budew into the battle. Dawn frowned; this Buneary lacked Ice Beam, which would have been useful in this battle. "Alright, Buneary, use Frustration!", Dawn called. He glowed red and charged the Budew. It sailed backwards, landing on its back.

"Budew, please, stand up and use Bullet Seed!", Nando commanded. The Budew jumped up and spit a volley of green bullets at Buneary.

Dawn cried "Dodge!", which her Buneary did fairly effectively; only a few seeds hit him. Dawn then told it to use Pound, causing one of its ears to glow white as it ran to strike Budew.

"No!", Nando gasped. "Dodge it, Budew!"

The command came too late. Budew was sent flying once more by Buneary's strike. "Great! Now, finish it with Frustration!", Dawn ordered.

"Budew, use Mega Drain; don't let it beat you!", Nando exclaimed. Budew shot a dark green beam from its head, but Buneary charged through it unaffected with its Frustration. Nando gasped as Buneary landed the final blow on Budew. Dawn was slightly astonished. As the green bud fell, she recalled how in-sync Nando and Budew had been in their proper first battle. However, it seemed in this world, they lacked that bond. Or, perhaps because it was night, they just couldn't use Sunny Day and Solar Beam effectively as they had before.

Nando recalled his Pokemon and approached Dawn. "I believe you have bested us. You and your Buneary must be close."

Dawn giggled lightly. "No, anything but! In fact, I just caught it today! That's why Frustration worked so well."

Nando looked a bit disheartened. "I suppose the universe is attempting to send me a message. If I lost so easily to a Coordinator, then this must not be my path," he sighed. Dawn attempted to tell Nando that because it was a normal battle, that wasn't quite the message intended; she did not want to lose one of her best rivals because of an odd fluke victory. However, he interrupted her by stating "Thank you for helping me. Would you be so kind as to accompany me to the Pokemon Center so I may heal my Budew and register for the Sinnoh League?".

Dawn sighed. "Sorry, I kind of left a friend and I really should make sure he isn't worried about me," she apologized.

"Very well then. I hope our paths shall cross again. Once again, thank you very much for your help."

As Nando headed off, Dawn retraced her steps to find Ash battling a wild Shinx. He commanded his Pikachu to use Quick Attack, knocking the Pokemon down. He then threw a Poke Ball at it, which shook twice before it burst out and bit down on Pikachu's tail. Pikachu then used Iron Tail, knocking the Shinx out. Ash threw another Poke Ball, a successful catch this time. Grinning, he picked up his new catch and exclaimed "Alright! I got a Shinx!", Pikachu cheering along with him.

"Nice catch," Dawn praised. "Y'know, there's a Pokemon Center nearby, so you can heal up Shinx, if you'd like."

Ash nodded. "Good idea. It is getting pretty late, so we can stay the night, too."

They found the Pokemon Center rather quickly, and while Ash was handing his new Shinx to Nurse Joy for healing, Dawn spotted Nando lurking near a machine. Dawn waved to him, and he motioned to her. "Ah, I was hoping to see you. You see, I realized if I am going to be facing Gyms, that I need stronger Pokemon. I believe my Budew is more suited for contests than battles."

"Oh, so you're changing your mind?"

Nando shook his head. "No, I have a proposition for you. Your Buneary seems to possess a great deal of strength, while my Budew is a more beauty-oriented Pokemon. I believe we should trade."

"A-are you sure?", Dawn asked. While she had no problem trading her Buneary, she could not imagine Nando not using his Budew. "I mean, Budew is a strong Pokemon, and the Oreburgh and Canalave gyms are weak to Grass-types."

"Yes, I am sure. Will you trade with me?"

Nervously, Dawn nodded. She saw now the machine beside them was a Pokemon Trading machine, and she placed her Buneary's Poke Ball on one end. Nando placed his Budew's on the other, and the two Pokemon buzzed past each other and into the other Poke Ball in the machine. Nando retrieved the Poke Ball of his new Buneary and nodded. "Thank you, Miss Dawn. I hope to see you again."

Dawn grabbed her Budew's Poke Ball and smiled sadly. Now Nando's partner Pokemon was her own. She only hoped she could use it as well as Nando once had. Lost in her thoughts, she heard Ash say "I got registered for the Sinnoh League! I'm exhausted. See you tomorrow!". She nodded and made her way into one of the many rooms in the Pokemon Center intended for Trainers to spend the night in and got into bed without even bothering to put on pajamas. Closing her eyes, she sleepily wished for this crazy world to be gone when she awoke and to find herself back in a field in the Kanto Region.

* * *

However, it was not so, as when she awoke, though for a moment she was not sure where she was, she still found herself in the Pokemon Center. She got up and greeted Ash, who was training with his newly acquired Shinx in the battlefield behind the Center. They soon departed and, much to Dawn's surprise, made it to Jubilife City by noon. Either Ash was far better at not getting lost in this world, Route 202 was much more efficient, or Sandgem and Jubilife were simply closer together than in her world. Dawn did not know which. Of course, when they got to the next Pokemon Center, a poster declared the Contest was in two days, so it was quite fortunate.

Dawn went to the battlefield at this Pokemon Center to attempt to train her Piplup and Budew. Quickly scanning Budew's Poke Ball, she found it knew Sunny Day, Mega Drain, Bullet Seed, and Water Sport, not Solarbeam. She decided that she would use it in the Appeal Round, and Piplup in the Battle Round. She then started to work on an Appeal using Budew's moveset, and train Piplup a bit.

* * *

_Party-_

_Dawn- Piplup (male, Lv 9) Ability- Torrent, Moves- Bubblebeam, Bide, Peck_

_Budew (female, Lv 8) Ability- Natural Cure, Moves- Bullet Seed, Sunny Day, Water Sport, Mega Drain_

_Ash- Pikachu (male, Lv ?) Ability- Static, Moves- Thunderbolt, Iron Tail, Quick Attack, Volt Tackle_

_Starly (male, Lv 9) Ability- Keen Eye, Moves- Quick Attack, Whirlwind, Wing Attack, Double Team_

_Shinx (female, Lv 8) Ability- Rivalry, Moves- Bite, Spark, Leer, Tackle_

_Other Trainers-_

_Nando- Buneary (Male, Lv 7) Ability- Klutz, Moves- Frustration, Pound, Endure, Defence Curl_

* * *

**_AN- Sorry this chapter's a bit shorter. Next one will be longer, most likely. Still, hope none of you are unhappy about Nando going for Gyms only and Dawn trading her Buneary for a Budew. If it makes you feel any better, she might not keep the Budew... Also, Ash has a Shinx now, like every single one of you suggested. Are you pleased with yourselves? By the way, do you guys like me listing the Pokemon at the end of the chapter, and do you want me to list their moves?_**

**_Also, keep suggesting Pokemon, especially for Zoey and Barry. Hikatoshi, I like your idea for Barry, but I'm afraid I probably won't be giving Zoey a Beautifly, since May already had one. However, you did give me an idea for another awesome Bug/Flying-type Zoey could catch. Other people, SUGGEST THINGS! Zoey's next chapter, and unless you want a transcription of her same appeal from DP011, I need good ideas for her. Then again, I might just go ahead and show what Bug I'm giving her early..._**

**_Thank you for reading! -Twilight Joltik_**

**_PS, this chapter is named for one of my favorite Fanfics of all time. It isn't up any more, but trust me, it was very good. It was by TheZettaFactor, so if you want to see it, go pester her about it._**


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